Metal Detecting is a wonderful hobby! However, it could be a little bit intimidating at the very beginning when you want to buy your first Metal Detector …
… Indeed, the price could be higher than your current budget, especially if you want to start with a very good and reliable model!
The good news is there are some models that are affordable for low-budgeted hobbyists and do the job just fine.
In this Post, I break down the cost of metal detectors, so hopefully you will get a good idea on how much these machines cost.
How much does a metal detector cost?
This is a very good and no non-sense question, however it is still vague in so many ways!
Indeed, there are different models, from beginners (Check the Price Here at Amazon) to mid-range (Check Price Here at Amazon) to High-end Metal Detectors (Check the Price Here at Amazon).
I’ve seen machines that are very very basic to the point that little kids could use them easily that are less than 50 bucks that you can start with if you are a beginner.
I’ve also seen models that have most the features that would even need (non-motion mode, waterproof coil and control box, multi-frequency capabilities, ground balance, solid discrimination, top-notch sensitivity …) that won’t cost you more than couple hundreds of bucks.
And Also, I’ve seen monster machine that can do it all, to the point of helping you unearth real treasures like gold nuggets that would cost you couple to several grands!
Good to mention that Pulse induction machines tend to cost more (even much more) than VLF models! This is due to the fact that Pulse induction technology is more dedicated towards professional usage.
How much does an entry-level cheap metal detector cost?
Here I am going to address my favorite low-budget model, the Bounty Hunter Tracker 4 (Check its Current Price Here at Amazon) which is very adapted for beginners!
It is lightweight and easy to use! Its sensitivity and discrimination are not bad at all.
You will find a built-in speaker and a headphone jack to which you can connect the headphones and listen to the audio signals. It is primarily used when you are hunting in a noisy environment. The knobs and audio tones will let you handle the hunting job with ease.
One of the limitations of this model is that it does not have the ground balance adjustment feature! This makes it struggle if you are dealing with highly conductive soil …
… You will find this feature in mid-range and high-end models!
There are three different modes including all-metal, tone, and full discrimination! Each one of them is adapted for a specific set of targets and will allow you to go to a certain depth.
A good thing about this affordable machine is the search coil which is waterproof!
What is the cost of a fully waterproof detecting machine?
In this section I’ll give you 2 examples, the first one is the Garrett AT Pro (Check its Current Price Here at Amazon) which is my one of my favorite models!
It is fully waterproof (coil and control box) and comes with a myriad of features including the iron audio, notch discrimination, manual and auto ground balance, pinpointing mode, and accurate target ID.
It is still simple to use even if seasoned detectorists highly prefer this model!
You can use it to detect relics, gold, and jewelry. With its ground balance settings, you can also use it for mineralized soil.
The fully submersible waterproof design would let you use in the water up to 10 feet. It is useful when you are going for shallow hunting in rivers, lakes, sea, or creeks.
The 15 kHz operating frequency lets you detect small targets with ease and offer the best separation of the target.
When the target is more in-depth, you will get fainter tones. It is best to use standard modes when hunting in the area where there is a lot of iron trash.
Now, let’s move on to a totally different model which is the Minelab Excalibur 2 …
… This one is more for the experienced detectorists hunting in saltwater and underwater!
It makes use of the broadband spectrum technology to receive and transmit the frequencies ranging from 1.5 kHz to 25.5 kHz. It can operate at different frequencies and provide you accurate information about the target and the ground.
You can use it to detect deeper targets without adjusting the ground balance!
This one is powerful and highly accurate when compared to other detectors. The pinpoint mode shows the exact location of the target.
Its 5 adjustable knobs deliver excellent performance and you can dive with it in the water up to 200 feet, especially in the saltwater.
How much is a High-end metal detector?
The Equinox 800 (Check its Current Price Here at Amazon) is my favorite metal detector period!
It is one of the first real multi-frequency machines and can operate on 5 different ones ranging from 5 kHz to 40 kHz.
This is pretty much like having 5 machines all in one!
You will get to use 50 notch discrimination that allows you to identify the metallic treasure and discriminate between the non-ferrous and ferrous metals.
It is fully waterproof so you can use for shallow hunting on the rivers, beaches, and other water bodies up to 3 feet.
This detector has four different detecting mechanisms, such as gold, park, field, and beach. You can use it based on the ground where you are using it. The four detecting modes will make the search process accurate.
Another stiff competitor of the Equinox is the XP Deus (Check its Current Price Here at Amazon) …
… In fact, it is a multi-frequency model ranging from 4 kHz to 18 kHz!
It is one of the rare detectors that offer 4 different ground balance types including the swing, pump, manual, and beach. Each one of them works better depending on the situation you are dealing with.
The most powerful point of the XP Deus is its top-notch sensitivity! It can see almost every possible target regardless of how small it is. That’s the main reason why the machines is a bit expensive.
How much is a gold detector?
In this section I will address detection devices that are different from what you are, probably, used to. These are gold detectors that can detect all different kinds of targets, but they are particularly superior while dealing with gold targets!
The Garrett AT Gold (Check its Current Price Here at Amazon) is probably the most popular out there from the Garrett House! It is fully waterproof and designed to work in the high mineralized soil where there are good chances finding raw gold.
It operates at 18 kHz frequency that is high enough for gold. Yet, you can adjust the frequency as per your preference.
There are three different pre audio search modes available. One is the metal mode, and the other two are the discrimination modes, which filter out trash from the target.
The metal mode will help you find the target that is in-depth and comes with sensitivity to detect small nuggets.
Now, if you are really serious about finding Gold in its raw form then the GPZ 7000 (Check This Similar Model Here at Amazon) is probably the Best choice!
It is a powerful device that is widely used by the gold hunters. Pretty incredible in performance and packed with many features.
Perfect to use on terrains and comes with the oval search coil. It gives quick responses with high sensitivity to capture the gold signals. The coil is waterproof that you can use near the seashore.
The super D search coil can be attached to the device to dig out the target in-depth.
The GPS location will record the target on Maps and it can find gold nuggets that are 80 inches of depth which is amazing!
You can learn more about the key differences between all purpose detectors and gold huntinh machines!
How much does a PI metal detector cost?
The Garrett ATX model (Check its Current Price Here at Amazon) is probably the best choice for treasure hunters!
You can use this device in the sand and salt environments. It is waterproof, easy to fold and store.
The ground balance feature would fine-tune the device to detect the target with ease.
It comes with multiple accessories and features that could make it expensive and out of the budget of many treasure hunters!
It can identify deeper metal targets with its high sensitivity when used in the mineralized environment.
You will find it extremely efficient on black sand areas where you can eventually find small and large nuggets, platinum jewelry, and gold. It picks the signals even from the low to high conductive areas where there are gold nuggets.
If you are interested in these models, then have a look at other expensive detectors here!
Conclusion
As you’ve might noticed, I didn’t mention specific prices in this article! The reason why is that prices could chance over time depending on the model availability, popularity and age …
… That’s why I’ve used Amazon as a reference, so you can go there and check the current price!
Hope you’ve found this post useful and answered some of your questions!
Finally, I want to say that even expensive metal detectors are worth buying! Just make sure to go through the learning curve and stick to it and you master using it.